A Durango woman was found guilty Friday in 6th Judicial District Court of hitting a pedestrian with her car and leaving the scene of an accident.
Jerica Rozanne Cook, 37, looked placid as District Judge Suzanne Carlson read four guilty verdicts: leaving the scene of an accident, vehicular assault, tampering with physical evidence and reckless driving. She was found innocent of failure to report an accident.
Cook faces anything from probation to six years in prison for the most serious charge, leaving the scene of an accident causing serious bodily injury.
The victim, Joshua Walker, 25, was flown to St. Anthony’s Hospital in Denver with serious brain injuries, among others. He continues to struggle with memory problems and needs 24-hour supervision.
The five-day jury trial started Monday. Sentencing is set for 9 a.m. Sept. 4 in La Plata County.
The accident occurred about 8 p.m. April 28, 2014, in the 3000 block of County Road 203, a few miles north of Durango city limits.
Prosecutors said Cook, who was traveling southbound, was trying to pass three vehicles on a double-yellow line when she swerved between two of the cars and ran off the right side of the road, striking Walker, who now lives in the Phoenix area.
Walker was walking southbound on the right shoulder of the road. The impact left a large dent in the hood of Cook’s car and broke the windshield.
Cook pulled over, exited her car before running back to her car and driving away, said Deputy District Attorney Justin Fay, during his closing arguments.
A man who called 911 was able to give dispatchers a partial description of her license plate and car, which was found about a week later in a private shop on Animas View Drive with the license plates removed. Dried blood on the car matched that of Walker’s.
Public defender Zak Brown said differing witness accounts are “unreliable.” He also faulted the police investigation.
It is possible the truck traveling in front of Cook hit Walker first, he said. But police were convinced Cook was guilty, so they focused all their efforts on finding her and didn’t thoroughly investigate other vehicles that were part of the convoy, Brown said. He said police had “tunnel vision.”
During closing arguments, he reminded jurors that Walker was wearing all black.
“Sometimes, an accident is simply that,” he said.
But Fay said Walker was on the right side of the white fog line. Drivers must be aware of obstacles, animals and people in front of them and off to the side of the road, he said.
If anyone had tunnel vision, it was Cook when she didn’t see Walker and tried to cover up her actions, Fay said.
In an interesting twist, Cook called the 911 dispatch Thursday night to report a drunken pedestrian on County Road 203.
Cook was taken into custody after Friday’s guilty verdicts. She has the option of posting a $10,000 bail to remain free until sentencing.
shane@durangoherald.com
